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Smoker's Custom Motard

415K views 2K replies 180 participants last post by  crazypj 
#1 ·
Been thinking A LOT about building a custom two-stroke motard. :D

I've got a nice 1987 RZ350, completely bone stock. I REALLY hate to strip it down to build a custom, but it's probably the best thing to do. It's already registered and plated here in California, so that will avoid a lot of future hassles.

So, now is the time for planning the build. Any ideas you guys may have would be much appreciated. I'll post up my ideas, and will get the work started when I feel comfortable with the design.

I want to use the existing RZ350 frame and engine, beyond that - it's wide open!! Soon, I'll post pics of the bike as it is now.

Here is a custom motard built with the same engine and frame:









 
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#1,504 ·
OEM radiator core is 16mm thick.
Custom radiator core will probably be 25mm thick.

Put one of the fans up to a 40mm core to see if it would pull air through. Didn't feel much coming through.

Used some smoke to see it a little better. Finally, a good use for the cancer meds. :D

Also put a 3 inch circle of notebook paper on the other side. The fan did hold the paper.

So, preliminary testing shows the fans are weak. Good job, genius.

If my RZ was running, I could get it up to temp and hold one or two of the fans up to the front of the radiator and see what happens. Hopefully, soon.
 
#1,509 ·
20ish years ago when I worked in maintenance I became fascinated with ammonia and designed most of a cooling system for a 929 that would use ammonia, so as to get rid of the radiator and all that. I then found out what would happen to me if it leaked and I was near it. Ideas are fun.
 
#1,510 ·
Ok I must be missing something here.
Why not just use an electric fan from a bike radiator? I have a few on the shelf, you want I send you a couple?
 
#1,511 ·
Yes, you missed it. You've got that track disease, taking over your brain. :D

If I use a puller fan, it will have to go in front of the cradle, and will push the radiator out 60mm or more. I don't think the tire will hit, but I think it looks much better with the radiator closer to the cradle.

I mistakenly assumed I would have room to mount the fan behind, or in-between the cradle bars (as done on the RZ350).

Here, I'm holding an aluminum bar flush with the front of the cradle. The thermostat housing is about 1mm away.



The hose on the thermostat housing angles forward as it goes up, and is flush with the front of the cradle at the top.



If I need to fit a 60mm thick fan between the cradle and radiator, hopefully I can design a fan shroud that helps it look better.

Not feeling a pusher fan.

The red lines in the last pic illustrate another issue. Need a nice radius at the top of the hose from the thermostat to the radiator. Closer the radiator, the tighter the radius.

I know I should stop fucking around and just do whatever I can to finish the bike fast, but I can't help it. If I'm not pushing the limits of my small brain and primitive abilities, it's not fun for me. I can't just buy shit, bolt it on, and be done. Unless I have to.
 
#1,515 ·
Full heat and full speed with the blow dryer. Didn't need to go to the heat gun.

Bashed into the free wheeling fan blade with the dryer several times while taking pics. :D

Held the heat on about 15 minutes. Lost my interest after that.

Didn't notice any change in the fan motor appearance or operation. No change in the appearance or palpable consistency of the housing.

Seems like a tough little fan. Wish it moved more air.

 
#1,517 ·
Looks all mad man. :D



Just trying to get a general idea of where the wires go, and what they do.

Don't have a schematic for the SXV ignition or the left hand switch gear.

May not be correct, but low & high beams, and horn are working. Trying to test turn signals & tail light next. After that, things will get more difficult.
 
#1,518 ·
Interesting stuff.

When the thermostat is closed, coolant flows from the head through the small bypass hose (4), to the radiator.



There are no tight bends in the OEM bypass hose, so I was thinking the bend in my custom (routed) hose could be bad for circulation and cooling. Also wondering if backpressure could cook the ceramic bearing prematurely.



Once I started examining the parts, I found out the opening in the OEM bypass tubing fitting is only 3.75mm!! Didn't expect that. The larger 5.75mm opening above goes to the overflow can.



Well, Damn. My custom hose is 8mm ID. Even with the tight bend, it might not make much difference.

I do have a backup plan. I can make a couple of CNC brackets and spin the part from 12 o'clock to 4 o'clock. Tubes will route nicely. Not quite as custom, though.

 
#1,521 ·
Triumph 955i Daytona pretty much has that exact same setup although connected slightly differently. Never had an issue with a bent bypass hose (at least one I was aware of)
 
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#1,523 ·
My DT engine was the same except it ran through the carb. There was a coolant hose coming straight out the cylinder head into the carb, then another coming from the carb and into the thermostat housing (bypassing the thermostat). I just blanked it all off. But yours looks like it might be necessary to bleed all the air out the top end.
 
#1,525 ·
Getting organized.

Working on getting parts/hardware together for TiN coating. Parts are on the bike, in bags & boxes, and just anywhere.

TiN coated titanium hardware from the first batch is all over the bike and engine.



Found 123 more pieces from this bike for coating. Also have about 10 new titanium parts being cut.

Plugging away. And loving it.
 
#1,527 ·
I didn't know you could TiN coat Ti parts... is that pretty much the same process as nitriding steel parts?
 
#1,528 ·
Well, more or less. I think there are numerous types of nitride coatings.

The gold TiN coating I'm using is the same as the gold coating on fork tubes. It's done in a vacuum oven, at over 900F degrees.

The coating is vaporized, and sticks to the parts in the oven. When it cools, it's only a few microns thick. Because the OEM engine torque bars and brackets are steel, I had them chromed to prep for TiN. TiN coating is so thin, rust and corrosion can still occur. For external parts, stainless or titanium is the way to go. Probaly okay for steel internal engine parts.

If the part is polished before coating, It'll look polished after coating. Pretty sure it will dull over time, like any polished titanium.

REALLY looking forward to seeing the exhaust stingers and tips in gold TiN.
 
#1,529 ·
ok, so the coating adds titanium even though the base metal is titanium. that's what I didn't know.
 
#1,530 ·
Feels good to get started with the wiring.

I know very little about motorcycle electricals, so I might have stupid questions and stupid ideas. Hope you guys will keep an eye out, so I don't burn down the bike and garage.

I'm guessing the battery is a good place to start, so I ordered a main fuse to attach between the battery and the m-unit & R/R. Never seen a mini ANL fuse on a bike. The RZ doesn't even have a starter, so there's no heavy wiring or amperage. Looks like ANL fuses are used for high amperage, but I found mini ANL 20 amp fuses. (OEM main fuse on the RZ350 is 20 amps.) Since both sides of the ANL fuse are secured with screws, I thought it would be a better choice than an AGU fuse which is held with spring pressure.





 
#1,532 ·
never been a fan of those screw on fuse holders.. they never close as well as they should, and you end up cranking them on.. never to be undone..


i would say.. look at revivals stuff, they have make your own fuse blocks.. maybe someone here knows what these are called and know if a single fuse type..https://shop.revivalcycles.com/waterproof-4-circuit-breaker-relay-fuse-block/

being a munit you only really need one fuse.. then you can run a solid state or breaker fuse.. https://shop.revivalcycles.com/solid-state-auto-reset-20-amp/
 
#1,533 ·
Main problem with installing an inline main fuse is there's no place to put it. Didn't plan ahead.

Trying to figure out what wire to order. Will probably use 4rcustomswire.com. (Recommended by Mike.) Thinking I could get by with 18 gauge wire for almost everything.
 
#1,538 ·
Was thinking about 22 gauge, but would hate to put it in the wrong place. :D

All of the inputs on the left side of the m-unit should be good to go with 26 gauge, or larger. 22 gauge is the smallest gauge sold in bulk on 4rcustomswire.com, so that's fine.



Appreciate any and all help, tips, and advice. :knucks:
 
#1,536 ·
It's a clean idea.

Had to look up fusable wire. Never seen it before.

Maybe as last resort. I could see it going wrong, in a big way.

Fancy 2 pole connector? No idea what that looks like, even after searching.

If wiring was an event in the Special Olympics, I'd probably come in last. :D
 
#1,543 ·
Thinking this morning about tinning wire ends for the main fuse setup. Common sense says when I tighten screws on the wire ends, the solder would break up. Read about wire ferrules, never seen one before. The M-Unit also uses screws to secure the wires, so I'll need ferrules and a ferrule crimping tool.

Just found this info. Doesn't really explain the problem. My bike does have a CDI ignition. Do I need a relay? Not clear to me why.

"If you think about how the m-Unit outputs work it becomes clear why a CDI will not work here, the Ignition Out provides 12v+ power which the CDI does not require. But by using a common 5 pole, normally closed relay we can make this work just like any other ignition. When the m-Unit provides power to the Ignition Output the relay opens the switched circuit. When the Kill Switch is activated the m-Unit cuts power to the relay in turn closing the switched circuit, grounding the CDI and eliminating ignition spark."

 
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